Survey Reveals Evolving Timelines, Expectations on Path to Retirement

For many people, the retirement planning path has been a winding one, and things do not always go as planned. 

 

Career (26%) and family (22%) events, not surprisingly, are the most common impetus for Americans to reassess or make changes to their retirement plans, according to the survey conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of TD Ameritrade. 

New opportunities in the market and health events were also common reasons for changing course, with both categories each receiving 20%. Interestingly, 1 in 10 (9%) Americans say new political leaders have triggered them to reassess or make changes to their retirement plans. 

 

Respondents in their 40s and 50s, as well as those with $250K+ in investable assets, are especially likely to change course with their retirement plan. Among the respondents who have changed their retirement savings plan at least once: 

 

 

Additionally, 25% of those with $250K+ in investable assets have changed their retirement plan more than six times. (Note that the survey results don’t specify what changes were made.)
As to triggers for early retirement, health and employment shifts were the most common. The findings show that half of retirees retired earlier than they would have liked and 28% of those who are retired say they felt pressure to retire, such as from an employer, family or social norms. 

 

The average target age to retire is 67, but only 60% of those in their 40s and 65% of those in their 50s think it’s likely they’ll be able to retire at their desired age. And despite self-reported planning, the number of Americans who have at least $100,000 saved for retirement doesn’t change significantly until reaching their 60s: 

 

 

“Americans don’t ramp up their retirement savings until they reach their 60s – this is where we see the biggest shift in saving attitudes,” says Dara Luber, senior manager of retirement at TD Ameritrade. “At the same time, the top retirement advice they’d give to their younger selves would be to start saving (68%) and investing (60%) earlier in life.” 

 

Meanwhile, nearly half (46%) of those in their 40s have already withdrawn from their retirement accounts. What’s more, only about 3 in 10 (31%) respondents age 50 and over are taking advantage of catch-up contributions. 

 

 

With a weakened reliance on Social Security, survey respondents are also adjusting to living longer – about 8 out of 80 (81%) are shifting their financial strategies to prepare for a potentially longer lifespan. Overall, 29% indicated they plan to maximize contributions to their retirement accounts to prepare for a potentially longer life span, while 43% of those with $250K+ in investable assets plan to do so. 

 

Most respondents also plan to cut back during retirement in anticipation of longevity, with 59% planning to reduce their overall expenses during retirement.

 

The results further show that those with higher assets are planning to lean on financial advisors and lower retirement withdrawal rates: 

 

 

The online survey was conducted from Aug. 30 to Sept. 10, 2019, among 2,000 U.S. adults ages 40-79 with at least $25,000 in investable assets. They were equally divided (i.e., 500 respondents each) into groups in their 40s, 50s, 60s and 70s.